Ban the Box moves in the right direction

Orion Group applauds plans to remove small criminal offences from job applications

Job applicants with criminal records may not have to disclose small and minor offences to employers under new proposals from the home secretary Sajid David according to HR Magazine.

Sajid Javid said the UK government needs to review how much is revealed
about people who have committed certain crimes when they apply for jobs.

It would appear that the tide is changing as more people realise how
fundamentally unfair the old system has been. Many people’s job searches
have been cut short by being discounted during the application process
for minor criminal offences committed many years ago.

Orion Group believes there is a need to examine the way criminal records
are disclosed on a larger scale: "Reviews by the Law Commission,
Justice Select Committee, Charlie Taylor and David Lammy MP have all
concluded that there is a need to look at the wider criminal records
disclosure regime, which is not fair, proportionate or effective.

Orion Group has worked with Business in the Community to Ban the Box,
removing the tick box from our job application forms that asks about
criminal convictions. By removing barriers to employment for
ex-offenders we can bring down the £15 billion a year cost of
re-offending, bringing diverse talent and essential skills into the UK
workforce.

Orion Group was delighted to put its weight behind the Ban the Box movement and signed up at the beginning of 2019. See our previous announcement from February

Find out more and sign up to Business in the Community’s Ban the Box campaign By clicking here